• WANTED: Happy members who like to discuss audio and other topics related to our interest. Desire to learn and share knowledge of science required. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!

Using an integrated amp as a power amp

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany
Hi,

Because I want to properly integrate a sub I need to high pass my mains (LS50) but my amp does not have a main in to use it as a power amp.

Is it possible to just use my integrated amp with the volume pot in a fixed position to achieve that?

I already found the volume position in which the amp produces the normal ~28dB of gain.

Would an integrated amp work like any other power amp with this setup or are there disadvantages to this?
 

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
Hi,

Because I want to properly integrate a sub I need to high pass my mains (LS50) but my amp does not have a main in to use it as a power amp.

Is it possible to just use my integrated amp with the volume pot in a fixed position to achieve that?

I already found the volume position in which the amp produces the normal ~28dB of gain.

Would an integrated amp work like any other power amp with this setup or are there disadvantages to this?
A integrated amp will work just fine in this application. No worries. Connect it and set the volume where you like it. :D
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany
What subwoofer and amp are you going to use?
Amp- Denon PMA 1500 RII, which is a normal class AB amp

Sub- Canton Sub 601, which I don't have yet but I will order it next week.
It's just a desk setup but my LS50 just don't get low enough.
I have a huge dip below 70hz and placement or EQ didn't fix it, so a sub should do the trick here.
 

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
This sub>
SUB_601_Rueckansicht_schwarz_hg_2016.jpg
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
So you want to use the high level input for the sub and take that from the Denon amp?
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany
So you want to use the high level input for the sub and take that from the Denon amp?
No, I will use a 4 channel soundcard as the source.
2 channels will get highpassed and go to the integrated amp (with set volume) and the other 2 channels will get low passed and got to the sub. I'll do this in EQ Apo or camillaDSP.
I'll control volume with my PC (or my raspberry Pi with camillaDSP)
 

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
No, I will use a 4 channel soundcard as the source.
2 channels will get highpassed and go to the integrated amp (with set volume) and the other 2 channels will get low passed and got to the sub. I'll do this in EQ Apo or camillaDSP.
I'll control volume with my PC (or my raspberry Pi with camillaDSP)
Now we are talkin. Nice setup. I was a bit miffed on how this was going down.
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany

Scrappy

Active Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2022
Messages
219
Likes
184
There’s a bunch of features on that sub. Variable phase is fun. Wonder what the “wide” and “‘narrow” compensations are. Guesstimates on modes perhaps? Is line-out post crossover?
 

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
What is the difference between the Denon PMA 1500R and the Denon PMA 1500R II? I'm not seeing the proper service manual for the "II" version.
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany
What is the difference between the Denon PMA 1500R and the Denon PMA 1500R II? I'm not seeing the proper service manual for the "II" version.
It's probably the same. These amps don't change that much with newer version. I don't think the manual has any useful information either
 
OP
juliangst

juliangst

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Dec 11, 2021
Messages
957
Likes
978
Location
Germany
There’s a bunch of features on that sub. Variable phase is fun. Wonder what the “wide” and “‘narrow” compensations are. Guesstimates on modes perhaps? Is line-out post crossover?
I guess it's just a paththrough. I'll definitely try the sub in a more normal setup first where I just connect it to the pre out of my amp. I might not even need to highpass my mains if it integrates nicely. High passing helps with lowering distortion and all that but at my listening distance I don't get to the point where high distortion in the bass would become a problem
 

Doodski

Grand Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Messages
20,745
Likes
20,756
Location
Canada
I guess it's just a paththrough. I'll definitely try the sub in a more normal setup first where I just connect it to the pre out of my amp. I might not even need to highpass my mains if it integrates nicely. High passing helps with lowering distortion and all that but at my listening distance I don't get to the point where high distortion in the bass would become a problem
Yeah, you will surely get more volume with highpassing but at such a close distance that won't be a big thing and the bottom end for the speakers might be cool at the desktop position. One only knows by test driving it.... :D Gonna have lotsa thump and good sound though either way!
 

dualazmak

Major Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Feb 29, 2020
Messages
2,817
Likes
2,949
Location
Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Hello OP @julangst,

Interesting thread since I use 4 (four) HiFi "integrated" amplifiers (plus L&R active sub-woofers) in my multichannel multi-drive multi-way multi-amplifier fully active stereo setup in my active multichannel audio project.

You can find my latest (as of May 30 2022) setup here.
And, please find here (on this thread) and here (remote independent thread post) the Hyperlink Index of this project as well as some of my related posts on remote threads.

In my post here, I wrote;
(Almost) all of the home-use Hi-Fi amplifiers, I mean integrated amps and power amps, are designed for full range operation, i.e. to cover ca. 20 Hz - 30 kHz. This means that we should be very much careful in evaluating and selecting each amplifier to directly and dedicatedly drive each of the SP drivers, in my case woofers (WO), Be-squawkers (Be-SQ), Be-tweeters (Be-TW) and horn super tweeters (ST). These BE-SQ, Be-TW and ST are highly efficient in response to amp's power input.

And of course "You must hear equipment in your own room in your own system, ... " as Purité Audio (keith) simply and kindly wrote here, so I have been intensively exploring amplifier evaluations and selections in this multichannel multi-amplifier project during the past 18 months.

Furthermore, throughout my amplifier exploration, I well experienced and learnt that we should never exclude high quality Hi-Fi "integrated amplifiers" to be possibly implemented in this type of multichannel multi-amplifier project.

My post here would be of interest regarding the "pros" of "integrated" amplifiers in multichannel multi-driver rig.
 

dualazmak

Major Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Feb 29, 2020
Messages
2,817
Likes
2,949
Location
Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
My posts here and here would be also of your interest, I assume.
 
Top Bottom